Hellfire
by Ravenwings12
Summary: A young pure ferret named Kara has her family and entire village taken away from her by an evil fox called Tirreg, and his army of vermin, the Haera. But when Kara is forced to confront Tirreg, something happens...something that has never happened before.
1. Default Chapter

­**Author's Note: O.K., readers and fellow authors, here are some things you need to know about this story. First: yes, I know all vermin are supposed to be evil, but the beginning of this story takes place a couple hundred seasons after Brian Jacques' books do, and some of the customs have changed – but it's still medieval, just to tell you. And the rest of the story takes place a couple _thousand _years after Jacques' books…O.K., I guess that's enough. Oh, yeah: yes, Kara is a pure ferret, and no, she doesn't have the same accent and Kurda and her family, because they live in the far north, and they've adapted there for a long time.**

**All the characters in this story, and the plot, belong to me, so no stealing! Other than that, I hope you enjoy this fic, I spent a lot of time working on it. See yah, plz R&R!**

Chapter 1

It was by far the worst day the northern lands had seen in quite a long time: the rain was coming down in curtains, so thick it was hard to see through it – although it was nearly impossible anyway, because the rain would pound mercilessly upon a creature's eyes, so much so that it was painful to keep them open. The small ruts and ditches in the ground were all overflowing with waters; it destroyed the dirt paths travelers used, turning them into nothing but sucking mudholes. The streams and rivers swelled, and as the rain pounded the earth without signs of tiring, a flood began to look inevitable.

However, a flood was the least of the worries of the small, hooded figure that still ran along the muddied path, despite the fact that it tripped every now and then, falling forward into the sucking mass. But it didn't stop for long – the figure would just rise, and continue to slip and stumble along the path, sometimes with its arms out to stop it from tripping. If anyone had been watching, they would have stared at the hooded creature in puzzlement, because no one in their right mind would be running around on such a horrible day, in such a horrible place.

But Kara of Kreel was in her right mind – she just wasn't in the right place. And, as she ran, panting and gasping for breath, along the path, she thought she would never be in the right place for as long as she lived.

The ferret was clad in a black cloak, its hood, which was too big for her head, drawn up. Underneath all the mud and slime, her fur was a pure white colour, and she had beautifully-set coral pink eyes. She was a pure ferret; but she had no idea of this. Actually, Kara of Kreel very few ideas, on very few subjects. But she had an idea right now, and a subject: escape from Tirreg, and his army of vermin, the _Haera_.

She had only one thought that drove her madly onwards: she knew if she stopped, even for a light sleep, she would be caught and brutally slain. Kara was cold, wet, hungry, covered in slippery mud, and she would have given her right paw to be anywhere else in the world than where she was. But she knew she couldn't do that; a long time ago, in a different place, she had given up on wishes and dreams. Her parents had always told her to wish, and to dream, and also to believe in herself, in order to fufill her destiny. But her parents weren't there – it seemed to the young ferret as if their existance had been thousands of years ago, when really it had only been four or five seasons. The worst seasons her young life had ever seen.

Suddenly, without warning, her legs gave out, and she fell heavily into the mud, inhaling some of it through her nose and mouth. But she didn't even have the strength to spit it out; she lay there, breathing heavily, her vision flickering, becoming a hazy greyish void. Her mind began to spin, and she tried to grasp the most important fact she could think of: she had to get up, and run, before the Haera arrived. But no…she could barely raise her aching chest to draw breath. It was all over. She might as well let sleep overtake her, in her last moments of her pathetic, miserable existance…

Flashback 

_Kreel was a beautiful little village, with a bustling community – every day, creatures would be hurrying around, journeying from the village sometimes by cart, but mostly by foot, and returning days later with fresh produce, which they kept in their cellars, in case of hard times. But, even though Kreel was in a particularily dangerous back of the northern lands, it saw very few hard times. The residents were relaxed and cheerful, skilled in the ways of farming; they knew very little about battling, because their lifestyle was so peaceful it hardly applied._

_There was a little hut on the far north side of Kreel, with a cooking pit out the front, which had been used the night before to cook a plump quail. In this hut lived a family of ferrets – pure ferrets, to be exact. They were skilled farmers, no matter what the seasons, and they knew how to live off of what they could get._

_Kara was a small ferret, with pure white fur and bright, eager, coral pink eyes. She was relaxed and laid back – many times, Kreelians had seen her sitting on the steps of her parents hut, playing on a little reed flute and singing in a beautiful voice a song that had been passed through her family for generations:_

"Over the rolling waters,

'Cross the dawn that slips through the night,

Up and down the hill and forest,

Until day sheds its light.

Looking for a home to go to,

Somewhere bright in the sun,

Where the berries are ripe and the apples are pure,

A place where we can always run.

Nowhere dark and fearful,

Where the light is gone and the evil prevails,

A home where the cages are broken and gone,

And the darkness tries to come and always fails.

'Neath the hills and across the oceans,

Down in the meadows and fields plenty,

Come there by day, when the dark seeps away,

And you shall be sure to find me."

_Sometimes, as well, she would go off and play with her two brothers and two sisters – they would wander into the grove of trees nearby, chasing birds, racing, or just playing among themselves. So it wasn't strange to see the four siblings travelling togethers towards the grove of trees, talking loudly and laughing. Their parents didn't mind – it gave them time to themselves, so they could farm and clear the land. That day was no acception – that one day, the day that would change the tides of Kara of Kreel's life…forever._

"_I want to swim!" Kara's younger brother, Yari, insisted as they walked towards the tall, leafy trees._

"_It's not warm enough to go swimming," her older sister, Lekira, admonished. "Besides, learn to compromise – nobody else wants to go swimming in that cold river."_

"_And remember what Mom said?" the youngest sister, Mira, piped up. "She says, if you goes in the water where it be's really deep, you sink – and mebbe get blown away!"_

_Lakira rolled her eyes skywards, but Kara smiled and patted her younger sister on the shoulder. "Don't worry, we're not going swimming," she said – then, an idea suddenly came to her head, and she smiled. "But we could play another game," she said slyly._

"_Another game?" Kara's oldest brother, Sashu, shook his head slightly. "There's not one game out there we haven't tried, and at least twoscore times, too."_

_Kara's smile widened. "Have you ever heard of Four Finders?"_

_Her siblings shook their heads and looked at her curiously, so she explained it to them. "Four Finders is a game when four creatures cover their faces, while the fifth hides. When the hider finds a hiding place, they have to shout 'Four Finders!', and the finders will have to go out and try to find them. Every once and a while, the finders will shout 'Hider!', and the hider will answer, 'Four Finders!' The finders have to try and follow the sound of the hider's voice, to find them. When they find the hider, they pick a new creature to take their place."_

"_I wanna be hider!" Mira shouted, as soon as Kara had finished speaking. Lakira turned to her and glared._

"_Kara gave us the idea, so she gets to be the hider," the older pure ferret said, as they entered the trees. Then she turned to the Kara. "All right, we'll cover our eyes, while you hide."_

"_Okay," Kara said, smiling in anticipation as her siblings turned and covered their eyes, beginning to count. The pure ferret ran along the grass on the tips of her footpaws, so they wouldn't hear her as she darted around. She knew exactly where to hide – she had wandered around the grove so many times, she knew every inch of it. She ran into a part in the trees where the foliage was very thick, then stood at the foot of the tallest, thickest tree of all. It was a huge old oak – it was at least twice as thick as the others, and its branches spread more than three times as wide. _

_Kara dug her claws in, pulling herself onto the tree, and climbing it, as fast as she could. She climbed past the lower branches, to the ones where the foliage was thickest, and sat on a branch, looking down. She couldn't see anything – so they couldn't see her, either. It was perfect._

"_Four Finders!" Kara shouted at the top of her voice, smiling to herself as she did so. A ways away, she could here scramblig and yelling as her siblings ran around, looking for her. The young ferret took out her reed flute, and played a little tune on it – not loud, though, only loud enough that she could hear. She was totally oblivious to the eye that had been watching her, that whole time._

_Kara waited. And waited. Time passed, and as she sat on the branch, listening, she could not hear the sound of her siblings anymore, and no one had even shouted "Hider!", not even once. The pure ferret listened closely, and heard nothing but the sound of a light breeze blowing through the leaves around her. She began to feel worried – this wasn't normal. Then again, they could have been playing a trick on her – but she doubted it._

_Kara lowered herself off of the branch, climbing down the tree and dropping to the ground. She looked around, surveying her surroundings. Nothing. _

"_Lakira!" she called, cupping her paws to her mouth. No answer. "Sashu? Lakiiiiira!" Still nothing._

_Kara wandered back through the forest, retracing her steps. Suddenly, ahead of her, there was a small crackle as a branch broke underpaw. The ferret smiled._

"_I know you're there," she called, sprinting forward. "That wasn't nice, I was really-"_

_Kara stopped in midsentence – not because someone had forced her, but from total shock. Her body stopped functioning for a brief moment, and her heart skipped a beat._

_There, in front of her, where the bodies of her siblings. They were covered in blood, and had been stabbed in various places: their chests, necks, backs, stomachs…heads. Their eyes were wide, and their mouths were open in shock. Kara took a step forward and stumbled, falling to her knees. She was crying unconciously, tears poured down her face as she touched the arm of her younger sister. Cold. Dead. Murdered._

_Suddenly, someone grabbed her – a rough paw was placed across her mouth, and the another hoisted her up. She screamed, but it was muffled by the paw. She was pulled back, and cold fear sprang into her heart as a voice right next to her ear whispered, "Shut up an' be still. One more move like that, and I'll run yer through."_

_Kara was still crying as the paw was pulled away from her mouth, and the creature grabbed both of her arms, pushing her forward from behind. "Quit blubberin'," he snarled – it was a male voice. "It's started – when we get yeh back to Fortress Krott, ye'll 'ave somethin' t'blubber about then." _

"_Who are you?" Kara sobbed, her footpaws moving clumsily as she tried to walk straight. "Why did you kill them? Why?"_

"_Shut up!" The creature whirled her around, and she saw it was a roughly-clad weasel, right before he slapped her in the face. "Don't ask questions, y'hear? Don't ask questions! Now, turn around an' walk!"_

_Kara turned around, tears streaming down her face. She had never been more frightened in her entire life – she had absolutely no idea what was going on, and the fact that her siblings were dead hadn't quite sunk in yet, because it was so horrible to try and grasp it. _

"_Finally," the weasel muttered, as the trees began to thin. "I thought I was going to miss the fun."_

_Kara didn't know what he meant, until she heard it – the distant sound of screams, and cruel laughter. Cold dread gripped the young ferret, and her stomach sunk. _

_And there it was._

_Right in front of her eyes, Kreel was being destroyed. Fire reflected in the pure ferret's eyes as she watched the cabins and huts of the village burning, flames licking viciously away at the woodwork. Vermin of all kinds were plundering the camp – weasels, foxes, rats, stoats, and other ferrets were running in, stealing objects from the huts, then lighting fire to them. The crops they had grown were trampled – the vermin had destroyed them. The smell of smoke was overwhelming, but another smell was even stronger in the air._

_Blood._

_All around, there were dead bodies – blood was oozing out of them, and screams rent the air as the vermin, weapons at hand, murdered the innocent farmers. Laughter mingled with the screams, and the smell of the smoke mingled with the smell of the blood._

_Kara wasn't aware of anything – the smell of death in her nostrils, she fell to the ground without even knowing it, her eyes rolling into her head as she passed out._

_Pain. Death. Sadness. Labour. Imprisonment._

_These were only some of the things Kara of Kreel felt after she was revived. There were only about ten creatures left alive from Kreel – and she didn't know any of them, whick meant one thing: her parents had been slain, too._

_Then the march – the march to Fortress Krott, a huge castle built on a large hill, ruled by King Tirreg – an evil fox. It was run by the _Haera_, a group of at least a thousand vermin, who bullied and sometimes even tortured the unfortunate slaves who served those of the higher order of Fortress Krott. _

_Kara remembered vividly there first day she had arrived – all it had been was one backbreaking task after another, and at the end of the day she had wept well into the night, for her friends and family, and the others of her homeland._

_Five seasons past._

_Kara was only twelve seasons of age, but she was one of the strongest at Fortress Krott…and the only one from Kreel who was still alive. She kept to herself at the Fortress – she thought that if she made any friends, they would die anyway, and bring her only more sadness. The pure ferret had developed a terrible hatred of the _Haera_, especially their leader._

_So, it was that day – that fateful day in late spring, where she had finally unlocked herself from the chain of creatures working out in the fields, and finally escaped. Of course, they had come after her – first hundreds of them, then groups of fifteen, and slowly it dwindled down – but then Tirreg himself had gone out looking for her, leaving the second-in-command of Fortress Krott, a weasel called Garret, in charge, and taking a score of his most faithful soldiers with him. _

_Kara had been forced to flee as fast as she could, without sleeping – for the _Haera _and their leader were following her, night and day, determined to find her, and kill her._

_Then one day, a horrible rain had broken out, and she had been forced to following the path, out in the open. The rain had continued for almost three days…and the _Haera _were catching…they were going to find her…if she didn't wake up…_

End of Flashback 

The _Haera _had picked up the tracks of their quarry on the path a while ago – they knew they were getting close. The vermin were running along the side of the path, so their progress wouldn't be hindered by the sucking mud.

Tirreg was a tall, powerful fox, with reddish gold fur, his tail ending in a black tuft. He was clad in a dark green tunic, belted by a snakeskin sash. His royal sword was thrust into it – it was razor sharp, the hilt made of silver, and glittering with brightly-coloured jemstones. He had been following the pure ferret that had escaped from his fortress for almost six days – and he was never going to let her escape.

"Sire, look o'er there!" one of the _Haera _cried, pointing to the path. Sure enough, not far away was a dark lump in the path – it had to be her.

"Encircle her!" Tirreg commanded, running ahead of his soldiers, drawing his sword. The commander couldn't help a smile creeping onto his lips – he had dreamt of this day, the day he would bring justice to the only one who had ever defied him. He was going to destroyed her.

Kara was never sure what had caused her to wake up – maybe it was some sixth sense in the back of her mind, or maybe she had heard them calling to one another. But she knew it: the _Haera _had finally arrived.

The pure ferret rolled to the side, just as a club hit the ground…where her head had been a moment before. She stood upright, undoing the clasp at her throat and shedding the cloak. Then she drew the long, curved dagger from her belt, gritting her teeth. They had found her – she could not outrun the _Haera_, now that they had her in their sight. But she was prepared to fight – fight her hated enemies to the death.

The one who had attacked her was an ugly-looking rat, and he looked shocked by her immediate recovery – so she moved in, swinging the dagger. It cut the unsuspecting rodent's throat – he gurgled, dropping the club on his footpaw and not even noticed. He clutched his throat, falling backwards.

"She's killed a _Haera_!" another vermin screamed in rage. "She must die!"

"Tirreg! Tirreg! Kiiiiiiiillll!" The vermin were chanting as they swarmed Kara, swinging their various weapons. The pure ferret couldn't see through their massing bodies – they pressed against her, and a sword gashed her arm. She cried out in pain – the pain mixed with her fear, and rage…and suddenly she felt a horrible anger well deep inside of her.

She hated them – they had destroyed her life, killed her family, and slain her friends and neighbours. They had made her waste five seasons of her life in Fortress Krott, whipped her, yelled at her…in her entire time at that fortress, all she had known was grief and anger. A madness she had been surpressing for so long was suddenly unleashed – she became a killing machine.

"Kreeeeeeeeell!" Kara bellowed at the top of her lungs, bulling forward – she swung the dagger around wildly, causing death and injury wherever she hit. The vermin were forced to scatter, for fear of being slain by the mad ferret. Distantly, she heard the voice of Tirreg: "Kill her, you fools! Kill her! I didn't come this far just to watch you cowards run away! Kill her!"

Kara felt no fear, only rage – and as the vermin crowded around her once more, she swung her dagger even faster, screaming, "I am Kara of Kreeeeeeel! I am never going to die! Neveeeeeer! I am going to kill you, all of you! Kreeeeeeel!"

Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of white light – at first, Kara thought it was only her seeing it, that something was wrong with her vision – but she heard the vermin scream, and they scattered once more.

"What in hellsteeth is that?" one of them cried.

"I doesn't matter what it is!" Tirreg howled. "Just kill her! Kill-"

The light intensified…and that was all Kara remembered. Just a blinding flash of white light…then nothing.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Kara awoke slowly – the back of her head was throbbing mercilessly, and her entire body ached. She tried to move her arm, and winced in pain; she had forgotten the gash the vermin had inflicted on her.

The vermin.

Everything came flooding back to the young pure ferret, so quickly she could hardly comprehend it: the confrontation, the madness that had enveloped her, the blinding flash of white light…then nothing. There had been nothing else...or at least that she could remember.

Finally, Kara opened her eyes – sunlight pierced them, and immediately she slitted them, looking around. All she could see above her was bright sky – no trace of Tirreg and the _Haera_.

Bright sky.

It had been storming when she had fought them…what had happened? Had she fainted, and lain unconscious for days and days? Or…dread seeped into her. Was she dead? _Don't be stupid, _she thought to herself. _That's impossible – besides, I can still feel pain_.

Finally, Kara found the strength to stand up – gritting her teeth in pain, she pushed herself up from the ground, teetering on her footpaws as she swayed drunkenly. Slowly, she unslitted her eyes – and gazed around in total disbelief.

Everything was so bright – so horribly bright…and so horribly unfamiliar. There were huge, tall, mountainous things, rising up so high that their peaks seemed to touch the sky. But they weren't mountains…oh, no, they were definitely _not _mountains. Their surfaces were completely flat, and completely shiny – the sun's light seemed to reflect off of them, sending the brightness right into the young pure ferret's eyes. And the ground…the ground was not grassy and muddy as it had been, but hard and grey, like gravel that had been melted together. And all around her were flashing lights – lights were everywhere, and they were so terribly bright that Kara just wanted to close her eyes and shut them off.

But perhaps the most frightening – and unnatural – was the huge, brightly-colored things. They were all sorts of different colors – red, green, yellow, black, silver, purple – and they ­_moved_. There seemed to be two flashing lights on them, and every so often they would stop, motionless, then begin to move again, sometimes so fast that they were hard to follow with your eyes. But, even stranger, there actually seemed to be creatures inside of them. What was it? Had they been eaten?

But these things moved – on their own, without being pulled. So…they had to be _alive_.

Kara had never been so completely terrified, and astounded. She knew this was not a dream…it couldn't be. She could smell the dirt in the air, feel pain in the back of her eyes from the flashing lights…but she wished it was a dream. She had no idea what had happened, no idea where she was, or what had happened to her.

However, there _did _seem to be creatures around her. At first, she was afraid they might attack her; but they didn't even seem to _notice _her. They were all kinds of different beasts – ferrets, stoats, weasels, mice, otters, rats, shrews, foxes, hedgehogs, squirrels – and they were all dressed extremely strangely. They were wearing odd, bright clothing, some with pictures on them that Kara didn't recognize. She reasoned that they must be some sort of symbol – but she had no idea what for. Some of them were carrying bags alongside of them, and some of them were actually crossing in front of the giant creatures. But, as they crossed in front of them, they didn't move; but as soon as they were out of the way, they started to go again, making an odd growling noise as they moved.

Kara was so scared that tears began to well in her eyes. "I don't know where I am," she said weakly, trembling slightly. However, suddenly, she felt herself tense – she wanted to know where she was. She _needed _to know where she was. This simply wasn't normal – she had been in a completely natural place, and she had now been put into this horrible environment. Anger began to churn in her stomach. _How dare they, _she thought, not thinking clearly. _How dare they do this!_

Suddenly, she ran forward, past all of the oddly-dressed beasts, and into the path of the bright creatures. "I want to know where I am!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "I want to know who brought me here!"

The bright creature in front of her was far away, but it was coming closer by the moment – she could her its strange growling. But, unlike it had been for the other beasts, it wasn't slowing down.

_It's not going to stop, _she thought, dread seeping into her. _It's going to hit me! _

Kara turned and began to run as fast as she could, her legs pumping like twin pistons. Fear enveloped her – she kept telling herself that she was going to make it, but the thing was still coming, its lights flashing, its growling becoming louder and louder. However, the pure ferret was not going to let it hit her – she jumped, landing on all fours on the hard ground, shock waves running through her injured arm. She winced it pain – it was still bleeding, the skin loose around it.

"What the hell were you doing? Are you crazy? You could have killed yourself!"

Kara looked up. A young squirrel was standing over her, carrying a bag by a long strap and wearing a brightly-colored tunic, which ended at her shoulders. On it was a strange yellow insignia that looked like the sun, but the pure ferret wasn't sure.

"You must be totally out of it," she continued, staring down at Kara with dark green eyes. "I saw you run in front of that car, and it was gonna hit you, you know that, right? Were you committing suicide or something, and decided to get cold feet right in the middle of it? Not very smart, if y'ask me." She paused, seeming to size her up. "What're you wearing that weird shirt for? And is that fake blood on your arm?"

Kara had no idea what the squirrel was talking about – first, because she was talking so fast, and second, because she was using strange terms the pure ferret had never even heard of. "W…what's a car?" she asked – then, it registered in her mind what the squirrel had just said. "I don't look weird, you do – all of you! And this is not fake blood – one of the _Haera _cut my arm!"

The squirrel stared at her. "What are you _talking _about?" Then she laughed. "Whoa, you _are _nuts. What's a car? You can't not know what a car is. And I look weird? Geez, I just bought this shirt – you can't be serious."

Kara, despite her position, began to feel angry. "I _can _not know what a car is," she snapped. "I don't even know where I am, or how I got here…or what any of this is." It was as she spoke that the pure ferret began to realize just how bad her situation was. However, the squirrel just laughed.

"Did you escape from the psycho ward or something? What happened, did you bump your head off a rock and forget everything?" Then she laughed again. "Here, lemme see your arm – that's pretty good fake blood."

She knelt down and tried to grab Kara's arm, but the pure ferret yanked it away. "Who are you?" she asked angrily, "and what are you talking about?"

"Oh, sorry," the squirrel said. "I didn't introduce myself. My name's May."

"Then what are you talking about?"

She sighed. "Fine, I guess I'll play along with you're little game. A car is one of those things"- she gestured to the brightly-colored creatures, -"and they're driven by beasts over fifteen seasons of age. And it's not a very good idea to jump in front of one of them – just so you know."

"I'm not playing a game," Kara snarled, not thinking straight and feeling unusually aggressive. "I have no idea where I am."

"Don't be silly," May said, chuckling. "Everyone knows where New York is." But, seeing the puzzled look on Kara's face, she sighed again. "Then, where did you come from?"

"I come from the north," the young pure ferret began, pausing to see if the squirrel had any idea of what she was talking about.

May shrugged. "Canada?"

Kara had never heard of this place, so she continued. "No, the Northlands. My family was killed by the _Haera_, and they took me and some others as their slaves. But the others died, so I was the only one left. But I escaped – and Tirreg, the leader of the _Haera_, came after me with a score of his creatures. He found me, and attacked me – that's how my arm got hurt. Then there was this flash of white light…and that's all I can remember."

May stared at her for a long moment, then she spoke, slightly less quickly as before. "This Tirreg guy, isn't he, like, sort of…retro? I mean, that can't have happened – the whole world would be up on their paws over something like that! That's totally against the law, and it's impossible I haven't heard of it, 'cause I watch the News every night!"

Kara stared back. "You're crazy," she said, her mouth hanging open. "What law are you talking about? And the whole world? They wouldn't get angry over Tirreg – there are probably a lot of other Warlords trying to do that same thing as him. And what's the News?

May shook her head. "No, it isn't me who's crazy," she said, her voice carrying strong disbelief. "Geez, you're not sane…I can't let you wander around like this, you'll throw yourself in front of another car. Which mental hospital are you from?"

Kara stared at her, feeling angry that she was treating her like an insane beast. "I don't know what you're talking about."

May sighed. "Fine, I guess I'll bring you home with me." The young squirrel stood up. "C'mon, follow me – my house is just close by."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Kara was still in total shock as May, walking rather close to her, led her along the strange hard path towards whatever dwelling she lived in. In fact, the pure ferret was so surprised that she could hardly focus on putting one footpaw in front of the other. It was just so…horrible. She had no idea where she was, what had happened, or how she had gotten into this predicament.

And she had no idea how to get back.

But then there was another thought nagging at the back of her mind: what would she do once she got back, if she ever did? She had nowhere to go, no one to help her, and the _Haera _might still be after her. However, even that seemed better than this alien world.

Suddenly, a thought struck her. What had happened to Tirreg and his vermin? They had all been near each other when the white light had flashed – what if _they _had been taken here, too? What if they were somewhere nearby, in the same state of mind that she was in? Kara reasoned that she would rather not think about it – she had her own problems at the moment.

"See," May muttered, pointing to the oddly-dressed creatures around them, "you reallyshould have thought about putting on a new wardrobe – everyone's _staring _at you."

Indeed, the creatures all did seem to be focusing their attention on Kara as she walked by, even slowing their pace to stare at her, giving her odd looks and looking at her arm. The pure ferret ignored them – she didn't really care what these strange beasts thought of her, because she doubted – and hoped – she would never see them again, anyway. However, their contemptuous glances were slightly unnerving; she forced herself to stare back, in the same contemptuous manner.

"Here, turn right." May pointed down another strange pathway, leading to a slightly more deserted pathway. Kara followed her, staring at all of the houses around them. They were huge, and seemed to be made of reddish brick, with windows high up that had either strange bright lights or voids of blackness around them. There actually was grass on the ground at the end of strange, black things, but it was not the same bright grass she had been used to – it was browner, more unhealthy-looking. To Kara, it seemed that it was dying, that the life had somehow been choked out of it. It took her a moment to realize that there were some of those car things standing in the black pathways. She jumped slightly – they were so big, and after she had almost been killed by one, they were also indimidating. However, they made no growling noises as the two beasts passed in front of them, and they were completely still. Their bright surfaces flashed oddly as the sun hit them.

"Here we are." May smiled, pointing to one of the largest houses Kara had seen so far. However, unlike most of the others, there was no "car" standing in front of it – the black pathway was bare. The squirrel led the pure ferret up the pathway and onto another one, only this time it was grey. In front of the large building there were lots of little plants Kara had never seen before; they appeared to be flowers, but there sprouted oddly and the were yellow, with what looked like another flower sprouting in the middle of them. The pure ferret blinked, and looked away – it was too strange to look at.

May led her up two large steps to an elaborate door, with a strange shiny thing with a button in the middle. However, the squirrel payed this no attention; she reached into her bag and pulled out a silver key, sticking it in the keyhole and turning it. There was a small _click_, and she reached forward, turning the doorknob and opening the door.

It was the strangest place Kara had ever been in – and one of the most well-kept, second only to Fortress Krott. It was dark, as there were no torches or candles lit at all, but there was light streaming in front a window, and she could see well enough to get more than a hint at her surroundings.

There were silk purple drapes next to the window, which was so pure it looked like it was made of crystal. The window was also outlined in some sort of odd shiny wood, like it had been mixed with metal or something. However, that was not it – next to the door was an a huge object made out of the same wood as the outline of the window, and there was a large thing curving up from it. There were long white things on it, as well as shorter black things on top of them – and there were many different colored buttons as well. On the wall – which was a lightish blue color – there were many square and rectangle pictures, depicting creatures playing in the grass and do other strange, pointless-looking things. There was an open doorway close by, which led into a huge room with a soft-looking long grey things with many lace-fringed pillows on it, and a large grey chair that looked to be made of the same material. However, that was not the oddest thing – near the two large soft things was a big square box, which was outlined with the shiny wood, but the middle was totally black – but there were strange-shaped buttons on the side of it.

"Whew, it's darker in here than I remembered it." May reached up, putting her paw on an odd switch thing that Kara hadn't noticed before. "Mind if I put the light on?"

Kara opened her mouth, about to ask her what she meant, but the squirrel didn't wait for a reply – she flicked the switch up, and suddenly the place was engulfed in a horribly bright light that seemed to be glaring down from the sky itself. It happened so suddenly and unexpectedly that the pure ferret screamed, throwing herself flat on the ground with her paws on her head.

"Holy hell!" May shrieked. "What is the _matter _with you?"

Kara felt every single sense in her body tingling – her mouth suddenly began totally dry. "W…what _happened_? What in hellsteeth is going on?"

May stared down at the pure ferret, her eyes full of shock. "I turn the light on," she said simply. "What else is there to know?"

Kara took her trembling paws off her head and sat up slowly – squinting, she looked up at the ceiling. On it was a square-shaped thing decorated with symbols of flowers, and coming from inside of it was that horribly bright light. It was scalding, and she had expected powerful heat to be radiated down on her from it, like the sun; but strangely there was no heat at all, and that made her even more concerned.

"This isn't right," she said, her voice shaking. "This is just…wrong."

May shook her head, raising one eye. "Clearly, you've never heard of electricity."

Kara stared at her with a blank look, and the squirrel's mouth hung open. "Who _are _you?" she asked suddenly, her eye still raised. "I don't get it – why are you acting so weird? You've seriously _never _heard of electricity – or cars? Where do you come from?"

"I am Kara," she said, her voice quickly rising in impatience, "and I am from Kreel, in the Northlands. And I have never heard of cars or electri…elet…etec…"

"Electricity."

"Yes – and I don't understand what the _News _is, or why everything is so big, and bright, and why the ground is covered in…melted rock or something, or why everybeast is dressed so strange, or-"

"You," May said suddenly, her voice filled with sudden impassiveness.

"Me what?"

"You sound like you're from…the past."

Kara stared at her. "Me…from the _past_? I don't understand what you're talking about – what do you mean, the past?"

May's expression changed – her eyes became bright, and her voice was again quick and eager. "Tell me about what happened – with the flash of light and everything."

Kara stared at her for a moment, then began slowly. "I was running from the _Haera_ – Tirreg's group – and I sort of…passed out from exhaustion." She didn't want to say that she had fallen asleep on the pathway; the squirrel already thought she was a madbeast. "When the _Haera _arrived, I guess I woke up, and I started to fight them – then one of them gashed my arm." The pure ferret pointed to her wound. "Then…I…I think I lost control of myself, and I started swinging my dagger, and attacking them…and Tirreg was screaming for them to kill me…and…there was this flash of white light. That's all I can remember…then I woke up here."

May gasped suddenly, her paw on her mouth. "Holy hell," she gasped. "What year are you from? The 1400's? Or the 1200's, maybe?"

"What are you talking about?" Kara snapped. She was starting to feel very angry – absolutely nothing was making sense to her anymore.

"What?" May stared at her. "You weren't keeping track of what year it was?"

"What's a year? And what do you mean, was I keeping track of it? I wasn't keeping track of anything – I was on the run!"

The squirrel shrugged. "Oh. I would've thought if you'd come from the past than at least you'd know from what year."

"I didn't come from the _past_," Kara snapped. "I came from the real world; which, in case you're wondering, is absolutely nothing like this place."

May chuckled. "Sorry to disappoint you," she said, in almost a mocking voice, "but this _is _the real world, so get used to it." The angry pure ferret opened her mouth to reply, but the squirrel overrode her. "Anyway, this really isn't the place for you to be – my parents could be home any minute, and they'd kill me if they realized I'd brought a madbeast to our house."

The insult was driven out of Kara's mind when she realized what May had just said. "You're parents would…_kill _you?" The pure ferret stared at her in shock. "I…they'd actually _do _that? They'd kill you?"

May snorted. "It's just an expression," she said casually – however, just as she was about to explain exactly what she meant, Kara suddenly cried out in pain and clutched at her arm.

"Argh!" The pure ferret was almost afraid to look at it; but when she did, she felt a sinking dread seep into her chest. "Hellsteeth," she snarled, pressing on it tightly, "it's bleeding like a waterfall!"

"Holy hell!" May said for the third time. "You weren't lying! Oh, what am I going to do…" Suddenly, her eyes lit up. "Come on," she said, swiftly helping Kara to her footpaws. "There's some of those old white bandages down in the basement."

- - - - - - -

Evening was creeping in by the time Tirreg awoke, bruised and battered. His throat was dry, and he snarled in pain when he realized his arm was streaked in blood. But that wasn't it – he felt something warm dripping down his left leg – blood, as well. But, strangely, there was no pain to accompany it, even though his leg was obviously injured in some way. Tirreg blinked. _That's impossible, _he thought. _Why is there no feeling in my leg? What's happening?_ However, he soon realized this, surprisingly, was the least of his worries.

The big fox's sharp eyes began to blink open gradually, and when they did, he felt himself freeze in shock.

He had no idea where he was.

The walls of the room – or at least he thought it was a room – that he was in was in were pure white, and he seemed to be lying in a bed or something that was high up above the ground; not very high, but higher than a normal bed. He wasn't dressed in his dark green tunic, or even his snakeskin sash – with a snarl of rage he realized his royal sword was gone, as well. Instead he was wearing a long, white thing that seemed to end near his footpaws, and there was a strange red bracelet thing around the wrist of his uninjured arm. His eyes scanned the room – beside his bed was a tall, thin thing, like a tree, but shiny; it was obviously made of metal or something. Near the top something stuck out of it, like the branch of a tree, except that it was straight – and from it hung a pouch that seemed to be filled with clear liquid, like water. From the pouch there was a clear rope-like thing, and it ran along the white floor; and it looked like it went right under the sheets of his bed, to…suddenly, he became aware of the strange numbness that went along with the unnatural painlessness in his obviously-injured leg.

The fox felt sudden shock.

They were actually _putting something into him_.

He didn't know how, or why, or even who "they" were, but he knew they were doing it.

Tirreg didn't remember much – only that he had finally cornered his archenemy, and she had gone completely crazy, wounding and killing the _Haera_…then there had been that flash of white light, and everything had disappeared.

And now he was here.

Another thing he didn't know: where _here _was.


End file.
